Free SHS Logo
Government has unveiled a logo for its much touted Free Senior High School Education policy.
The logo was unveiled by President Nana Akufo-Addo, during a ceremony at the Flagstaff House on Thursday.
The logo for the Free SHS programme features two students celebrating because they are beneficiaries of the policy.
Underneath the symbol are three words; access, equity and quality and the logo features an open book, which the Minister of State in-Charge of Tertiary Education, Professor Kwesi Yankah, explained: “represents learning that generates hope and optimism for a prosperous Ghana.”
“The central symbol portrays two children emerging from a pleasurable learning experience as they spontaneously explode in joy. They are beneficiaries of the policy that lifts the total burden of fees from parents.”
The Free SHS programme, scheduled to start in September 2017, will ensure that government absorbs the full cost of public secondary education.
Under the free SHS policy, beneficiaries will not have to pay admission fees, library fees, science centre fees, computer lab fees, examination fees and utility fees, according to the government.
The free SHS policy will also cover agricultural, vocational and technical institutions at the secondary school level.
The Ministry of Education, in June 2017, also unveiled Ghanaian actor, Abraham Attah, as an ambassador for the Free SHS policy.
Abraham Attah (L) on his Free SHS ambassadorial rounds
The move was heavily criticised for being unnecessary in the grand scheme of things.
Some critics also said Abraham Attah was not even schooling in Ghana as he is resident in the United States, courtesy of his acting career.
The government is yet to release a policy document on this policy it has been trumpeting since 2008, which critics have noted is more important than the developments pertaining to public relations.
The absence of a policy document for the Akufo-Addo government’s free SHS policy has in the past been noted as contributing to uncertainties about the timelines, source of funding and scope of the policy.
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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana